Secretariat Staff

Brianda Hernandez Cavalcanti joined the Talloires Network in October 2013 as the Spanish Language University liaison and then as the University Volunteers Program coordinator in May 2014, becoming Program Manager and Administrator for the Network as of July 2015. She holds a Master’s degree in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University and a B.A. from California State University Northridge in Urban Studies and Planning. Prior to joining the Network, Brianda worked in the areas of advocacy, community based-urban design, and urban greening projects in Los Angeles, California. She was born in Mexico and is a firm believer in education and the power of diversity.

Dr. Lorlene Hoyt is a Research Professor in the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning, a faculty member of the Tisch College of Civic Life at Tufts University, and the Executive Director of the Talloires Network. From 2002-2011, she served as Assistant then Associate Professor of Urban Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.) where she founded MIT@Lawrence, an award-winning city-campus partnership with the City of Lawrence, Massachusetts. At Tufts University, she advises graduate theses, teaches graduate seminars, and leads the Talloires Network - a global network of 380 engaged universities in 77 countries. Dr. Hoyt’s research has been published in a variety of academic journals including the International Journal of Public Administration, Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, All Ireland Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, and Gateways: International Journal of Community Research. She offers a new paradigm for graduate education in Transforming Cities and Minds Through the Scholarship of Engagement, a book she wrote with a group of six M.I.T. students. More recently, she coordinated a research and writing collaboration with engaged scholars who are leading exemplary university civic engagement programs in seven countries on six continents. Their collective work entitled Regional Perspectives on Learning-by-Doing: Stories from Engaged Universities Around the World was published by Michigan State University Press. She holds a Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning from the University of Pennsylvania. For more information, see http://www.lorlenehoyt.com/

Rob Hollister was Founding Dean of the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service at Tufts University. He is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning. A pioneer in the engaged university movement, Professor Hollister was founding dean of the Tisch College of Civic Life, a uniquely comprehensive university-wide program to prepare students in all fields for lifetimes of active citizenship. In 2005, he co-founded the Talloires Network. He is currently Senior Advisor to the University Social Responsibility Network.